Former Kalamazoo coach dies

Terrance Brooks coached at three Division III
schools, including a three-year stint as the head coach at
Kalamazoo. Sacramento State athletics photo

The Sacramento State athletics department is saddened to
announce the passing of director of strength and conditioning
Terrance Brooks on Monday, June 13.

Brooks was the head coach at Kalamazoo from 2005-07 and was
previously an assistant coach at Shenandoah and Bridgewater
(Va.).

"The Kalamazoo College community was stunned to learn of the
sudden passing of Coach Terrance Brooks," said Eileen
Wilson-Oyelaran, the college's president. "We extend heartfelt
sympathy to his wife and family. Coach Brooks was a class act. His
high expectations for outstanding performance on the field and for
outstanding sportsmanship and moral character both on and off the
field had a tremendous impact on the Kalamazoo College football
program and on the young men with whom he worked. "

"Terrance was a great man in every sense of the word,"
Shenandoah coach Paul Barnes said. "He was a terrific football
coach but an even better example for our young men.

"The world lost a great guy yesterday and we will miss him."

"My thoughts and prayers go to Terrance's family at this time,"
Sacramento State athletic director Terry Wanless said. "Terrance
was a special person who I had had the honor of working with since
he was a student-athlete. He was a valuable member of our staff and
a man that everyone looked up to and respected. He will be deeply
missed."

Brooks joined Sacramento State in February 2009 and spearheaded
the transformation of the strength and conditioning program. One of
the biggest supporters of the department, Brooks could regularly be
found in the stands or on the sidelines at most Sacramento State
sporting events.

Prior to coming to Sacramento State, Brooks was the head strength
and conditioning coach for football, women's volleyball, men's
swimming, and men's and women's golf at Division I Towson.

A former Div. II All-American in football at Towson, Brooks
played on the offensive line for the Tigers from 1981-84 —
where Wanless served as the defensive coordinator. He helped lead
Towson to the NCAA Div. II quarterfinals as a junior and to the
semifinals as a senior. He was inducted into the school's athletic
hall of fame in 2011. Brooks also competed in track and field where
he was the East Coast Conference champion in the discus.

After an injury cut his professional football career short, Brooks
began competing in weightlifting. He was a four-time world and
five-time national Drug Free Powerlifting champion. Brooks was a
member of the United States team which won the gold medal at the
2007 North American Powerlifting Championships.